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H-2B cap
A collective gasp was heard across the industry last March when the
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) announced it had received enough H-2B
petitions to meet this year's congressionally mandated cap of 66,000
new workers. It was apparent that a number of landscape companies would
face direct impacts by not being able to bring in all the H-2B workers
they had planned to employ — despite a survey we conducted that indicated
44% of you had all your labor needs lined up. The fact that the cap was
hit so early in the year underscored the urgent need for comprehensive
immigration reform.
Related stories:
"Industry
surprised by H-2B cap," by Ron Hall, LM Week in Review,
March 11, 2004.
"ANLA
supports recent Congressional action on H-2B cap," LM Week
in Review, April 8, 2004.
"ALCA
joins PLCAA in H-2B 'call to action'," LM Week in Review,
July 9, 2004.
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 Gas
prices go up, up, up
Everyone's been whining about increasing gas prices, but perhaps those
with the biggest gripes are landscape company owners. They're not only
getting hit filling up their family SUV but at the shop, too, where gas
makes their weed trimmers, mowers, skid-steers and trucks go. Many have
added surcharges to their customers' bills as a remedy. Some have considered
going to a four-day work week or using plant growth regulators to reduce
the amount of turf they mow. Gas prices don't look to be going down anytime
soon, and if you believe what some say, the era of cheap oil may have
permanently come to an end. So landscape companies have been served notice
that they must operate more efficiently.
Related stories:
"Gas
price outlook remains bleak," LM Week in Review, May
7, 2004.
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 Water
shortages
As the demand for water increases with the burgeoning worldwide population
and droughts become more and more frequent, landscapers will eventually
have to face the music and change their ways. The 21st Century Water Commission
Act of 2003 seeks to project future water supply and demand, find ways
to increase water supplies, and develop other water strategies with water
agencies and entities. Whether it be having to install more water-friendly
landscaping on customers' properties or add more services to make up for
a loss in revenue, the landscaping industry will have to change. It's
estimated that 2,000 landscape-related jobs and $60 million in revenue
were lost in Colorado alone in 2002-2003 due to water restrictions.
Related article list: Irrigation
& Water Issues
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 Emerald
ash borer
Emerald ash borer (EAB) infestation continues to grow, killing ash trees
which are an important timber species, landscape tree and wildlife food.
The latest discovery of the exotic forest pest from China was in Steuben
County in Illinois. It has also been discovered in Michigan and Ontario.
According to USDA Forest Service inventory data, there are about 692 million
ash trees growing on timberland in Michigan. The estimates don't include
urban trees growing in yards and along streets. One impact on the landscape
industry is the following: Ash is a common street tree, often representing
5-20% of all street trees in many midwestern and Canadian cities. The
potential loss of ash as an urban street tree greatly reduces the selection
of suitable species available to homeowners and municipalities and could
contribute to urban heating.
Related stories:
"Southeastern
Michigan reels from emerald ash borer devastation," LM Week
in Review, May 7, 2004.
"Toronto
destroys 60,000 ash trees in last ditch effort to halt EAB,"
LM Week in Review, March 5, 2004.
"Michigan
landscaper fined $12,300 for shipping EAB-infested ash trees to Maryland,"
LM Week in Review, February 4, 2004.
"Emerald
ash borer leapfrogs from Michigan to Maryland," LM Week
in Review, September 12, 2003.
"USDA
commits $14.55 million to destroy emerald ash borer," LM
Week in Review, May 19, 2003.
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 "Do
not call" list
When the Federal Trade Commission enacted the "Do
Not Call Registry," lots of consumers couldn't wait to sign up so
their dinners would no longer be interrupted by telemarketers. But lawn
care companies cringed. It immediately drove the cost up of getting new
customers, and forced some to consider going a more costly route and go
door-to-door or ramp up direct mail campaigns. But then again, according
to a PLCAA survey, only 17% of respondents reported great results from
telemarketing, and 56% reported mixed or no positive results. Some said
it would have little effect on their business. One thing's for sure: it
won't be the last change the lawn care industry will be forced to adapt
to.
Related story: "Trugreen
runs afoul of Wisconsin's 'no-call' law," LM Week in Review,
June 29, 2004.
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Phosphorus bans
Phosphorus is still on everybody's minds, particularly legislators in
states such as Wisconsin, Vermont and Minnesota who think that phosphorus
runoff from fertilizer on lawns harms lakes. Lawn care professionals continually
point out that healthy turf actually reduces the amount of phosphorus
runoff because it acts like a sponge. Phosphorus runoff from farm runoff,
grass clippings, leaves and goose droppings, they say, are more of a problem.
Lawn care pros mobilized and forced council in the Village of Pewaukee,
WI to reconsider a phosphorus ban, but Vermont legislators are now also
considering a bill that would limit the amount of phosphorus property
owners can apply to their lawns.
Related stories:
"Good
team work convinces a village council to reconsider a proposed phosphorus
fertilizer ban," by Lynne Brakeman, LM Week in Review,
March 22, 2004.
"Vermont
legislators consider a bill to limit lawn fertilizer use,"
LM Week in Review, March 22, 2004.
"Madison,
WI is the latest city to adopt lawn care fertilizer regulations,"
LM Week in Review, March 5, 2004.
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 Canada
lawn care pros under attack
Environmental activists have waged war with lawn care pros up North,
and so far they're winning. They've managed to get many municipalities
to ban the cosmetic use of pesticides on residential lawns, with heavy
fines for non-compliance. The most recent setback involved a vote to uphold
a bylaw in Toronto to ban all pesticides from private property. A compromise
version allowing chemical usage on lawns if the amount of weeds was 5%
or more of the total area was rejected. The fear among U.S. lawn care
pros is that the environmentalists will figure out a way to bring their
battle to their country soon, but at least they, unlike their Canadian
colleagues who were blindsided, will be prepared.
Related stories:
"Toronto
pesticide bylaw upheld; Compromise version rejected; lawn care pros
stunned," by Jason Stahl, LM Week in Review, June 29,
2004.
"New
vote on Toronto pesticide bylaw bans all pesticides on private property
by 2007," LM Week in Review, May 25, 2004.
"Ontario
Superior Court upholds Toronto's restrictive pesticide bylaw,"
LM Week in Review, January 7, 2004.
"Group
seeks to ban lawn pesticides in Connecticut," LM Week in
Review, January 7, 2004.
"Quebec
bans non-agricultural uses of pesticides," LM Week in Review,
March 28, 2003.
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 Sudden
oak death syndrome (P. ramorum)
Sudden oak death syndrome (caused by the pathogen Phytopthera ramorum),
a disease which causes die off and cankers on many trees and ornamentals,
was first identified nearly two years ago in southern California coastal
forests. The ANLA has suggested calling this disease by the more accurate
name, "Ramorum canker and blight."
The problem became a crisis this year, with the discovery of P. Ramorum
at a large nursery in southern California that had already shipped hundreds
of infected plants to dozens of states. The result: A virtual shut down
of California's nursery export market as the USDA's Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service (APHIS) took over nursery inspections in California
and many state governments banned import of any of the affected plant
species from that state.
Most recently, the Oregon Department of Agriculture to adopt the nation's
most rigorous plant inspection program in an effort to stop the spread
of the disease.
Related stories:
"Oregon
Dept of Ag adopts emergency rule to halt the spread of P. Ramorum,"
LM Week in Review, June 29, 2004.
"Ramorum
canker and leaf blight from infected California nurseries discovered
in Georgia, Florida and Canada," LM Week in Review,
April 23, 2004.
"USDA
APHIS widens Ramorum canker (aka sudden oak death) regulations for California
nurseries," LM Week in Review, April 23, 2004.
"All
California nurseries must undergo USDA inspection for Sudden Oak Death
pathogen," LM Week in Review, March 29, 2004.
"Sudden
Oak Death pathogen discovered at large southern California nursery;
nationwide search is on for plants already shipped to other states,"
LM Week in Review, March 19, 2004.
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Neighbor notification
Neighbor notification laws regarding the use of pesticides continue
to proliferate, with the latest developments occuring in Delaware. House
Bill No. 425 aims at amending the Delaware code relating to pesticides,
adding a new subchapter on "Pesticide Hypersensitivity Registry." Lawn
care operators would then have to notify those citizens in the registry
when spraying within 500 feet of their property.
Related Links:
Pennsylvania
Pesticide Sensitivity Registry
Washington
State Dept. of Agriculture Pesticide Sensitivity Registry
Michigan
Dept. of Agriculture Pesticide Notification Registry
Maine
Pesticide Registry
New
York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation Neighbor Notification
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Emissions regulations
Whether you hear it from Stihl, Shindaiwa, or other manufacturers of
outdoor power equipment, emissions regulations are only going to get stricter
in the future. Last year, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved
new emissions limits for lawn mowers and other gas-powered tools, including
new regulations that would require that small engines sold in California
by 2007 come with anti-pollution improvements such as catalytic converters.
Some equipment manufacturers speculated that the new regulations could
add $50 or more to the cost of lawn mowers or force them to move operations
overseas.
Related story: "Proposed
California small engine emissions regulations bog down federal legislation,"
LM Week in Review, October 31, 2003.
Related link: The
EPA's Nonroad Engines, Equipment, and Vehicles page
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